DALLAS - The Boilermakers split into two groups and caught a pair of morning charter planes to bring the football team to its bowl destination in Dallas.

The offensive players and coaching staff departed first, leaving the Purdue airport at 9 a.m. ET. The defensive players and coaches, along with the specialists, caught the second plane and left West Lafayette at 10 a.m. The nearly two-hour flight saw the first group reach Dallas at 10:10 a.m. CT, with the second group touching down at 11:10 a.m. CT.

The reunited team, along with the players from Texas who remained in the Lone Star State with all of the winter weather hitting Indiana, met as a group at the team hotel at 12:30 before breaking for lunch.

The team, along with Heart of Dallas Bowl opponent Oklahoma State, will head over to American Airlines Arena tonight to watch the Dallas Mavericks take on the Denver Nuggets at 7:30 p.m. CT.

Purdue will hold its first practice at SMU on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT. Volunteer team members will also take part in community service events at the North Texas Food Bank and the Panini Youth Football Clinic at Bishop Lynch High School on Saturday.